Takeaways from Celtics’ loss to the Cavs: Close won’t cut it

By A. Sherrod Blakely

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Takeaways from Celtics’ loss to the Cavs: Close won’t cut it

BOSTON – If there’s one thing that has emerged with the Celtics this season, it is that they are an extremely prideful group. That’s why they don’t really focus too much on what they did well in their loss at Cleveland or the adversity that they were able to overcome and actually make it a game.

But don’t let that pride get in the way of what’s happening before our very eyes.

This team is growing, people.

There’s a heightened level of responsibility they take into every game. And when they don’t meet their own expectations, they become angry.

And when angry, they go back to the lab, work on their collective games and return to the floor better, more focused than before.

That’s why the loss to the Cavaliers, much like their early loss this season at Chicago, bothers them so much.

“We played a game we felt like we could have won,” said Isaiah Thomas. “And we didn’t play that well.”

And that is why this team is so different than the previous three under Brad Stevens. Fans and the media will have expectations, but they fall well short of what this team expects from within.

NBA’S BEST BACKCOURT?

The season is still young but the Celtics’ Isaiah Thomas and Avery Bradley have emerged as a top five backcourt in the NBA in just about every statistical category of significance. Thomas was named to his first All-Star game a year ago and is making a strong case for a repeat trip. One of his stiffest competitors for an All-Star nod may be Bradley who has become one of the NBA’s better two-way talents.

BROOKLYN PICK (FINALLY) PAYS OFF

Marcus Smart was a nice piece for Boston to add courtesy of the 2013 trade with the Brooklyn Nets. But the Celtics drafting Jaylen Brown may be the gem of what has been a treasure trove (though some might call it a box of junk nobody else really wants) of draft picks for the Celtics. He’s coming off a career-high 19 points against Cleveland and naturally that has brought about a heightened level of excitement. But even before he went at LeBron James, Brown was distinguishing himself as a confident youngster who was among the better rookies in the NBA. The kid has a bright future in this league, and we’re starting to see more and more of that.

3-POINT DEFENSE HAS TAKEN A STEP BACK

There was talk that the Celtics would once again be a top five team defensively, which made a lot of sense when you consider the makeup of their roster. That’s not going to happen until they do a better job defending the 3-point shot. Last season, they ranked among the league’s top 10 when it came to opponent 3s made per game (7.8, fifth best in the NBA), opponent 3-point attempts (23.3, 10th) and opponent 3-point percentage (.336, fourth). But after five games, the Celtics are in the bottom 10 in each of those categories.

REBOUNDING CONTINUES TO BE A PROBLEM

We knew rebounding would be an uphill battle for the Celtics this season and that has truly played itself out thus far. Thursday night was yet another game in which the Celtics found themselves coming up short when it comes to rebounding. Cleveland had a 44-38 rebounding edge. The Celtics are playing with fire if they continue along this course. Consider this: Boston is ranked 27th in the NBA in rebounding percentage (.468). Of the teams that make up the bottom five in this category, the Celtics are the only ones with a winning record. In fact, Boston’s three-win total equals the total number of wins by the other four teams combined. The Celtics have to find a way to get better in this area of the game.